Feed meter for conveyed material

Abstract

A feed meter for determining the feed rate of conveyed material comprising a rotatable encoded disc which rotates in proportion to the velocity of conveyed material and displaces the disc in proportion to the depth of material being conveyed, whereby a fixed detector provides an output representative of feed rate. One use of the feed meters is for controlling the application rate of additive material to conveyed material.

I claim: 
     
       1. A feed meter for determining the feed rate of conveyed material, comprising: a rotatable encoded disc having concentrically arranged readout elements that vary quantitatively in relation to the radial distance from the center of the disc;   detector means for detecting the readout elements of the encoded disc;   said readout elements having varying radial lengths; and   follower means operatively associated with said discs for rotating the disc in proportion to the velocity of conveyed material and displacing the disc relative to the detector in proportion to the cross-sectional area of material being conveyed such that the number of readout elements detected varies in proportion to the displacement of the disc, wherein the detector provides an output signal representing feed rate.   
     
     
       2. A system for controlling the application rate of additive material to conveyed material as a function of the feed rate of the conveyed material, comprising: a rotatable encoded disc having concentrically arranged readout elements that vary quantitatively in relation to the radial distance from the center of the disc;   detector means for detecting the readout elements of the encoded disc;   follower means operatively associated with said disc for rotating the disc in proportion to the velocity of conveyed material and displacing the disc relative to the detector in proportion to the cross-sectional area of material being conveyed, whereby the detector provides an output signal representing feed rate;   supply means for additive material;   a dispensing control device for controlling the dispensing of the additive material; and   a controller responsive to the output signal of the detector for controlling the dispensing control device according to a selected ratio of additive material to conveyed material.   
     
     
       3. The system of claim 2 wherein the encoded disc comprises readout elements of varying lengths such that the number of elements detected varies in proportion to displacement. 
     
     
       4. The system of claim 2 further comprising a flow measuring device to provide a signal representing the rate of additive material dispensed for utilization by the controller.